1. Field of the invention
This invention relates to water wings for airplane floats and particularly to water wings for airplane floats that allow floats to go on-step faster.
2. Description of related art
Small airplanes with floats have been used for decades. These planes are able to land and take off from bodies of water, such as lakes. This ability gives people greater access to backcountry locations. Despite the benefits of floats, they do have some drawbacks. Most notably are the weight restrictions on loading float planes. Because these planes take off on water, they require a lot of room to gain speed. Moreover, excess weight may make it impossible to get the plane off the water in a reasonable space, if at all. The problem centers on the floats themselves. They sit in the water until the plane gets enough speed to go "on step". Once on step, the drag of the water on the floats is greatly reduced, allowing the plane to gain speed for takeoff.
Although some planes have been built for amphibious use, and some embody some type of water wing system, none has used such a wing on a typical float structure.